My Kentucky Adventure: Lexington

Our final full day only had loose plans, and they didn't really firm up until around 10am, which was fine by me.

We had been to Louisville several times, but now it was time to see Lexington a little, which i'd been wanting to do.  So we planned, despite the forecast rain, to go to Ashland, the home of Henry Clay in Lexington.

Again i felt like i was at one of the plantation tours back home, and i'm glad i find them so interesting, they never grow old to me.  There is a type of wallpaper in the Ashland home that is so very rare there are almost no other examples of it extant, and tons of really interesting stuff.

Since Ashland is just a block off Main Street, we headed back down there to a small restaurant that we had seen in the travel book that was vegetarian/vegan friendly.  It turned out to be excellent, and very accommodating.

While we were there, there was a tornado watch, but all we got was a bit of drizzle.  One area of Lexington, we found out after we were back at the resort with the blue skies over us as we walked the trail, had a tornado touch down!

The evening was spent with those of us who hadn't left town, and Fivecat our hostess and her husband, eating leftovers and talking and wishing the evening would never end.

All of the leftovers that we weren't packing home was given to Fivecat to take home -- it took up all of the back of her minivan!

As much as i wanted to, i couldn't stay up late, because the next day would be a long drive.  Dayeanu would be expecting me, and i had a card for her from the rest of the group.


Today is:

Air Force Day -- India

American Touch Tag Day -- go outside and remember how much fun it is to play tag

Bring Your Teddy Bear to Work Day -- at your own risk! sponsored by Susan E. Schwartz of "Teddies Are The Answer"

Cephalopod Awareness Days:  Octopus Day -- celebrating the most intelligent invertebrates in the world; today, celebrate all the eight-armed species

Children's Day -- Iran

Emergency Nurses Day

Feast of St. Bridget -- Sweden (traditional date, others who recognize the saint celebrate on July 23; Patron of widows; Europe; Sweden)

Feast of St. Keyne -- Celtic Saint, patroness of the spring and tree arbor that bear her name; the first to drink of her water after being newly married will have the upper hand in the marriage

Frankfurt Book Fair -- Frankfurt, Germany (world's largest international book fair; through Sunday)

Full Hunter's Moon/Full Blood Moon/Full Sanguine Moon (some also consider this the true Harvest Moon, if last month's came too early)
     Boun Ok Phansa and Ventiane -- Laos (end of "Buddist Lent" and a traditional boat race festival starting tomorrow)
     Kojagrat Purnima -- Nepal (end of Dashain)
     Thadingyut Full Moon/"Buddhist Lent" ends -- Myanmar (begins at sunset, through tomorrow)
     Vap Full Moon Poya Day -- Sri Lanka

Independence Day -- Croatia

International Top Spinning Day -- sponsored by the Spinning Top and Yo-Yo Museum, to recognize the Earth as a large spinning top; add your spins to the total and e-mail results to the sponsor

International Walk to School/Bike to School Day -- to promote both healthy exercise and less pollution

Lovable Lawyers Day -- internet generated, and if you love one, good for you

National Fluffernutter Day

National Pet Obesity Day -- because about half of pets in the US are overweight or obese

National Pierogi Day -- this day in 1952, Ted Twardzik, Sr., produced Mrs. T's Pierogies samples and took them to a local grocery store; eat a pierogi today in his honor

National Stop Bullying Day -- sponsored by Hey U.G.L.Y., which stands for Unique Gifted Lovable You

Navy Day/Battle of Angamos Day -- Peru

San Ernesto Day -- celebration of Che Guevera as a saint who answers prayers for rain among Bolivian campesinos

SAVE Today -- US (Stop America's Violence Everywhere, a day created in 1995 by the American Medical Association Alliance)

Sergeant Alvin C. York Day -- US (the feats for which he earned the Medal of Honor in 1918 were accomplished on this date)

St. Demetrius' Day (Patron of Belgrade, Serbia; Salonica, Greece; Thessaloniki, Greece; against evil spirits)

St. Pelagia the Penitant's Day (Patron of actresses)

St. Thais' Day (Patron of fallen women)

Sukkot -- Judaism (begins at sundown, through sundown the 15th)

Tavistock Goose Fair -- Tavistock, Devon, UK (known locally as the Goosey, dating back to 12th-century Michaelmas fairs, this orginal livestock fair is now mostly a fun festival)

Tube Top Day -- if you dare. i don't


Anniversary Today:

Ozzie Nelson marries Harriet Hilliard, 1935


Birthdays Today:

Matt Damon, 1970
Darrell Hammond, 1960
Stephanie Zimbalist, 1956
Bill Elliot, 1955
Sigourney Weaver, 1949
Sarah Purcell, 1948
Chevy Chase, 1943
R. L. Stine, 1943
Jesse Jackson, 1941
Harvey Pekat, 1939
Paul Hogan, 1939
Clodagh Aubry, 1937
Rona Barrett, 1936
Faith Ringgld, 1930
Juan Peron, 1895
Eddie Rickenbacker, 1890
Benito Jerónimo Feijóo y Montenegro, 1676
Heinrich Schutz, 1585


Debuting/Premiering Today:

"Cagney and Lacey"(TV), 1981
"Sugar Babies"(Revue) 1979
"The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet"(Radio), 1944
"Capricorn Concerto"(Barber Op. 21), 1944
"In the Shadow of the Glen"(Play), 1903


Today in History:

Constantine, Emperor of the Eastern Roman Empire, defeats Licinius, Emperor of the Western Roman Empire, at the Battle of Cibalae, 314
Great standing on the Ugra river, a standoff between the forces of Akhmat Khan, Khan of the Great Horde, and the Grand Duke Ivan III of Russia, which resulted in the retreat of the Tataro-Mongols and eventual disintegration of the Horde, 1480
The supernova "Kepler's Nova" is first sighted, 1604
The Massachusetts Bay Colony forms its first government, 1633
First recorded eruption of Galunggung (volcano of West Java, Indonesia) sends boiling sludge into the valley (this volcano would later erupt at such a time as to cause passenger jets to be damaged and forced into emergency landings), 1822
The first Hawai'ian constitution is proclaimed, 1840
The telegraph line from LA to SF opens, 1860

A gas explosion causes the Peshtigo Fire, in Peshtigo, Wisconsin, which killed between 1,200 and 2,500 people and consumed the entire town of Peshtigo and surrounding forests and several other villages -- the deadliest fire in American history, it covered 1.5 million acres, and occurred on the same day as the Great Chicago Fire, 1871

The Great Chicago Fire, which consumed 4 square miles, killed 200, and destroyed the original Emancipation Proclamation, began, 1871

The first women's prison run by women opens at the Indiana Reformatory Institute, 1873
Dow Jones begins reporting an average of selected industrial stocks, 1896
Edmonton, Alberta and Prince Albert, Saskatchewan are incorporated as cities in Canada, 1904
New York Yankees's Don Larsen pitched the only perfect game in a World Series; one of only 20 perfect games in MLB history, 1956
Algeria joins the United Nations, 1962
Guerrilla leader Che Guevara and his men are captured in Bolivia, 1967
Australia's Ken Warby sets the current world water speed record of 317.60mph at Blowering Dam, Australia, 1978
A deadly earthquake hits Pakistan, 2005
Australian mare Black Caviar ties the horse racing record set by Phar Lap with an unbeaten run of 14 wins, 2011